William koenen



(No Model.)

INVENT'DR' Whg WlTNESSEs ,Wawy

` STATES UNrTn n WTILLIAM KOENEN, OF CLEVELAND, OHIO, ASSIGNOR 'on oNni-IALF To DE FRISTE VOGT, OF SAME PLACE.

STREET-RAILROAD SWITCH. y

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 427,089, dated May 6 1890.

Application filed August 2l, 1889. Serial No. 321,446. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom, it may concern."

Beit known that I, WILLIAMKOENEN, of

Oleveland,in the county of Cuyahoga and State of Ohio, a subject of the King of Prussia, have invented a new and useful Improvenient in Automatic Street-Railroad Switches; and I do hereby declare that the following is a true, full, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to automatic streetrailroad switches; and the improvement consists in the peculiar construction and arrangement of the actuating mechanism thereof.

That the invention may be fully seen and understood, reference will be had to the following specification and the accompanyin g drawings, in which- Figure l is a plan view of a railway-track and branch thereof provided with the switching mechanism above referred to. Fig. 2 is a vertical transverse section on line x Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section on line a," and Fig. et is a vertical transverse section on line y y of Fig. l. The three last-named figures are enlarged with reference to Fig. l.

Like letters of reference denote like parts in the drawings and specification.

In Fig. l, A A represent the main track, B B a branch therefrom, and O the switch-rail for said branch. Arranged in connection with said switch-rail O is an underground shifting mechanism, which is operated by means of wheels secured to the front axle of the cars. Substantially said shifting mechf anism consists of the line-shaft D, the lever E, with connecting-bar F, and the lever G, with tappets II Il', Figs. n, 3, and 4. The said shaft is arranged within the tube I, and thelevers with appendages within the casings J and K, to protect said parts and to allow of their free movement therein. The tube I extends between said casings, and the shaft D is guided in the bearings a and l? of the sides thereof, as seen in Fig. 3, while the levers are of said bar is pivoted to the lever F, as seen at g. Underneath said bar is journaled the roller M ina manner so as to assure a free movement of the switch-rail.

The tappets I-I H', which are located within the casing K, engage with their slotted sh anks h over the pins t' of the two-armed lever Gr at the front end of the shaft D. The upper part or head j of said tappets projects through and is guided in the openings 7a, which the lid d, in connection with the notched face-plate Z, forms, as seen in Figs. l and 2. To the lever G is secured the tension-plate N, and it is the free ends thereof upon which the tappets are carried. The connection of tappets and leverk is to a certain degree elastic, and thereby undue strains upon the levers or shaft,prevented. Said plate, however, is made sufficiently strong or stiff, soas not to yieldbefore the switchrail O is moved from one side to the other within the guard-rail L, and then only when the switch-rail comes to bear on either side of the guard-rail and the corresponding tappet is still further depressed by the passing wheel O on the front axle of the cars. tension-plate will yield, and thus save the diverse parts of the shifting mechanism from being damaged. The face-plate ofthe casing K isprovided with aring ianges m, into which the wheel O enters before depression of the tappet takes place. Said flanges serve the double purpose-viz., as a guide for the assin' wheel and )rotection of the raised' tappet. The tappets are so set in relation to the switch-rail that in whatever position said switch-rail may be one of said tappets projects out far enough through the opening k toV move the rail when depressed sufficiently far enough in the direction which it has under control.

In Fig. 3 the cover CZ of the casing K is removed to enable a full side View of the tap pet H. For illustration, it is supposed that the switch-rail O is set for the side trackBB. In that instance the tappet H is raised, as 9 5 shown in Figs. 2 and 3. Thus the approaching car, if intended to proceed on the main track, will enter with its wheel O 0n the side where the tappet Il is located and depress the same, which results in turning the lever F in direcroo Said tion of the arrow, Fig. 4, and in moving,` the switch-rail C by means of the connecting-bar F until said rail strikes the opposite side of the guard-rail L, which allows the car to pass on, as desired. Simultaneously with depressing the tappet H the tappet II is'raised for being depressed by the wheel of the car proceeding toward the branch track.

By the above-described means each car is enabled to set the switch-rail in advance automatically, so as to readily proceed on its intended route when approaching the switch.

What I claim, and desire to secure by Let 1. In combination, the switch-rail, the tappet H, the shaft D, connections therefrom to Witnesses:

P. L. BAUM, H. C. McDoNALD. 

